PLOT SOURCEBOOKS

BattleTech has always been a dynamic universe with progressing storylines that shake things up, uniting and shattering factions, developing characters into beloved (or despised) icons that wage a valiant struggle or die a glorious death. Such events breathe life not only into the fiction players read, but the games they play.

The current universe-shaking storyline that’s in its final stages is the Word of Blake’s Jihad, begun with the publication of Blake Ascending: A Jihad Plot Compilation.

Nearly fifteen years have passed since the end of the Word of Blake Jihad and the rise of the Republic of the Sphere. Yet even as the Inner Sphere adjusts to a new sense of normalcy, questions remain about whether the Blakist threat is gone for good or merely hibernating.

Once a disorganized collective of hobbyists and academics backed by the idle wealthy, Interstellar Expeditions has emerged from the fires of war to take up the mission once claimed by ComStar’s Explorer Corps: to search for the elusive hiding places where humanity’s enemies might have gone. From the dead worlds within the borders of the Inner Sphere itself, to the distant, uncharted reaches of the Deep Periphery, IE relentlessly searches for the answers to mysteries dating back to mankind’s first ventures into deep space, while simultaneously watching for any sign of the zealots who so recently waged the most horrendous interstellar war in modern history.

Interstellar Expeditions: Interstellar Players 3 describes the organization and efforts of Interstellar Expeditions as it continues to search within (and beyond) human-occupied space in the BattleTech universe. First introduced in Interstellar Players, IE’s operations have now gone truly universal, seeking answers and treasures not only from the lost and forgotten worlds of humanity’s distant past, but also the distant colonies and civilizations that have risen—and even fallen—beyond the boundaries of the Inner Sphere. Gamemasters and players can decide which of these groups and discoveries may actually bear fruit, and which are the misdirections left behind by the surviving leaders of the Blakist war machine. Whether from this sourcebook or the gamemaster’s own imagination, these discoveries can become the ultimate villain, ally, or unique new setting for any type of BattleTech campaign!

eBook Availability Interstellar Expeditions is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

Terra is secure. The Protectorate is free. The Manei Domini are scattered. The Master has fled to his final refuge. As the last embers of the Word of Blake are finally extinguished across the Inner Sphere, a new nation is born—and a new era is dawning. Forged in the fires of the greatest war fought since the coming of the Clans, the Republic of the Sphere promises peace and stability few could have imagined since the start of the Jihad in 3067.

Jihad: Final Reckoning completes the Jihad plot book series started with Blake Ascending, wrapping up the final years of the war between the Word of Blake and the Inner Sphere, and establishing the birth of the Republic of the Sphere. With articles covering the final fateful years of the war, this book includes articles and intelligence reports from across the Inner Sphere, along with additional rules and campaign tracks for BattleTech campaigns played using the Total Warfare and A Time of War game rules. This book also provides a snapshot of the postwar universe, laying the groundwork for future campaigns. Also included is a glimpse at the more fantastic weapons and assets the Word of Blake was developing before its final fall—complete with rules for top-secret units, including the Caspar III system and Spectral LAMs.

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eBook Availability Jihad: Final Reckoning is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

Descendants of the Star League Defense Force, they returned to the Inner Sphere in 3050 with violence and honor. Stalled by the combined might of the Inner Sphere, the Clans have been waiting for the chance to strike for Terra once more. But fractures within Nicholas Kerensky’s Great Society have widened. A new enemy threatens to destroy the Clans once and for all: themselves. The resulting Wars of Reaving touches every Clan: some will be destroyed, all will be forever altered.

The Wars of Reaving sourcebook details the Clans from 3067 through the end of the Jihad era and includes detailed reports, faction updates, personalities, units, and equipment that have a hand in this widespread orgy of war. Essential gameplay statistics, maps, and a complete campaign allow players to immerse themselves completely within these Wars of Reaving.

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A wallpaper of the cover illustration is available in the gallery.

eBook Availability The Wars of Reaving is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

For more than ten years, the Word of Blake’s Jihad has engulfed the states of the Inner Sphere and the invading Clans in chaos and fire. Reeling from attacks on all fronts, realms have fought one another while the Word’s masters built a powerful Protectorate around humanity’s home: Terra. But with the rise of a resourceful rebel leader, Devlin Stone, the collective might of the Great Houses and rival Clans have united for an all-out assault against the Protectorate—one that can only end when humanity’s home is free once again!

Jihad Hot Spots: Terra continues the Jihad plot book series started with Blake Ascending, bringing readers into the latter years of the war between the Word of Blake and the Inner Sphere. Seen from the eyes of those who fight and die in this epic struggle, this book includes articles and intelligence excerpts from across the Inner Sphere, along with additional rules and campaign tracks for both BattleTech campaigns played using the BattleTech and A Time of War: The BattleTech RPGgame rules. This book also provides a rare, in-depth look at the Terran system itself, including the history and varied cultures who live on these most revered worlds. Also included are rules and units for the elaborate defense network the Word of Blake unveiled against Stone and his allied Coalition throughout the Protectorate campaign.

eBook Availability Jihad Hot Spots: Terra is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

Nine years since the death of the Second Star League, the Word of Blake’s holy war against all of humanity rages on. But new heroes, and new alliances have been forged between interstellar nations of the Inner Sphere and the Clans, setting aside centuries of distrust and hatred to unite as never before against the common enemy. Emerging from shattered realms, the allied coalition has finally found the strength to turn the tide, and now the Word and its allies are on the defensive. But even as the allies prepare for the inevitable finale, the Word’s unseen Master and his fanatical minions won’t fall without a fight!

Jihad Hot Spots: 3076 continues the Jihad plot book series started with Blake Ascending, bringing readers into the raging conflict of the war between the Word of Blake and the Inner Sphere. Seen from the eyes of those who fight and die in this epic struggle, this book includes articles and intelligence excerpts from across the Inner Sphere, along with additional rules and campaign tracks for both BattleTech and A Time of War: The BattleTech RPG games, from the unwilling allies of the Blakist war machine, to the experimental technologies that gave the Word its incredible—if costly—edge for years, to several new BattleMechs, vehicles, and combat spacecraft that debuted in the midst of this turning point in the war.

eBook Availability Jihad Hot Spots: 3076 is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

Chandrasekhar Kurita has spent his life hunting for ancient secrets. Almost as soon as the Word of Blake formed in 3052, “Uncle Chandy” put his vast network of spies and his massive wealth toward digging behind their façade and now, two decades later, Uncle Chandy has discovered more than he ever thought possible. Now he's using that knowledge to send a coalition of forces against one of the Blakists' hidden five worlds: the Ruins of Gabriel. More importantly, he's found a connection to the single greatest mystery in the last half-millennia. Aware he's almost guaranteed his death at the hands of a Blakist fanatic, Uncle Chandy knows the time has come to stand in the light and reveal the secrets that will change the tide of the Jihad!

Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents contains a wealth of information on the current universe-shaking Jihad storyline, providing more “hard facts” than any book to date. Detailed information on the opening years of the Jihad, including maps of the most significant conflicts; a current 3075 “Around the Sphere” in the same vein as the Jihad Hot Spots series provides up-to-date information on the latest happenings; biographies of more than twenty individuals important to the Jihad; a complete description of all Word of Blake forces, including unit logos; and the hidden history of Clan Wolverine and the Minnesota Tribe revealed! A complete rules section rounds the book out, with game play rules for taking any Word of Blake division into the field, construction rules for “primitive units,” and new 'Mechs, including Clan Wolverine's Mercury II, Pulverizer, and Stag, the “primitive” Dervish and the mysterious Raptor II.

eBook Availability Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

On October 25, 3068, the Word of Blake flooded the Inner Sphere HPG networks with "White Noise", a stream of gibberish and propaganda that made normal communications virtually impossible. Amid the noise, stunning secrets were revealed: Anastasius Focht was once Frederick Steiner; ComStar Primus Sharilar Mori was a Kurita spy.

Yet along with the secrets revealed and the spreading fires of the Jihad, the Blakists unveiled terrible new weapons and an army the size of which the intelligence agencies of the Inner Sphere had scarcely dreamed, spawning a darker, new wave of mysteries, and whispers of shadowy cabals. Hidden worlds, cults of assassins, ancient societies and even the mysteries of hyperspace—all emerged as possible sources for the Word of Blake's newfound power. Once more spanning all of human space from ancient Terra to the far-flung Clan homeworlds, the conspiracies behind the Jihad could be the key to unraveling the greatest war since the days of Amaris.

Jihad Conspiracies: Interstellar Players 2 describes several of the most powerful and influential people, organizations, and entities at work behind the scenes of the Word of Blake Jihad. Some of these conspiracies are firmly grounded in BattleTech lore, but shown here in ways never before seen; others have only recently emerged from their own shadows. Gamemasters and players can decide which of these power brokers are real and which are paranoid fantasies spawned by the chaos and fear of the Blakist Holy War!

eBook Availability Jihad Conspiracies: Interstellar Players 2 is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

For nearly four years, the fires of war have threatened to consume all the nations of mankind as the Word of Blake’s furious campaign of terror and deception raged on. Millions have died, mighty armies have fallen, and ancient empires have shattered, with no end in sight. But even as all hope seems lost, heroes old and new rise from the ashes of fire-blackened worlds to stand against the chaos and, maybe, to start turning the tide at last.

Jihad Hot Spots: 3072 continues the Jihad series, begun with Blake Ascending, bringing the readers into the ongoing chaos and horror of the Sphere-spanning war, as seen from the eyes of those who fight—and die—in this epic conflict. Players of both Total Warfare and A Time of War: The BattleTech RPG will find additional rules and campaign tracks within to continue their campaigns across the Inner Sphere as the Blakist holy war rages on. Finally, Jihad Hot Spots: 3072 contains detailed information on the cyber-soldiers of the Manei Domini, as well as a mini-Technical Readout section—including record sheets—for numerous new units, including the six new Celestial-series Word of Blake OmniMechs.

eBook Availability Jihad Hot Spots: 3072 is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

The Early Years of the Jihad
November 3067 saw the culmination of work two centuries in the making, work begun by Primus Conrad Toyama of ComStar, successor to Jerome Blake and the man responsible for single-handedly turning ComStar into a pseudo-religious organization with a vision: to lead mankind to the light...by any means necessary.

When the Star League self-destructs, a shadowy power behind the fanatical Word of Blake pulls the strings taut in righteous anger, launching a war to bring humanity to its knees. Confusion reigns, and each faction finds itself isolated amid its own turmoil. Yet as a new decade dawns, glimpses of the greater whole begin to appear through the dark clouds. The true battle has only just begun.

Blake Ascending: A Jihad Compilation is an omnibus reprint of Dawn of the Jihad and Jihad Hot Spots: 3070; the first two sourcebooks in the seminal Jihad plot line. The Blake Ascending sourcebook shakes the Classic BattleTech universe to its foundation, documenting the opening years from 3067 to 3070. The series of events presented in this book unfold in a rolling format, allowing readers to immerse themselves more directly into the action than ever before. Players of both Classic BattleTech and Classic BattleTech RPG will find framework rules to run any type of campaign in regions through out the Inner Sphere during this chaotic time.

eBook Availability Blake Ascending: A Jihad Plot Sourcebook Compilation is available from the following eBook/PDF vendors:

BattleTech is a science-fiction “space opera”: a factional, militarized universe set in the thirty-first century, a future where humanity has spread to the stars and spawned titanic interstellar empires, each nation controlling hundreds of worlds across a region of space stretching a thousand light years and beyond.

Initially published over thirty years ago as a tabletop board game, BattleTech has gone on to become one of the gaming industry’s most important and longest-lasting science-fiction universes.